Using v2 Widgets for Business Apps or Games

Version 2 of the widget library was released the beginning of April, 2013. The videos below show how to use the new widgets.

Update Nov 2013: The sample code in each section has been updated to work with Corona SDK build 2013.2076 or later — Graphics 2.0 engine caused some big changes. That means the sample code no longer exactly matches the videos because of the code changes that were necessary.

I’m working on updating the videos but until that happens, just know the downloadable sample code in each section supercedes the code you see in the videos.

You’ll notice some missing numbers below (such as #2 is gone). Those are reserved for upcoming lessons. Just skip the missing numbers for now and don’t fret. 😉

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly About Widgets Corona SDK is the best framework I’ve found for quickly creating 2D mobile games. With the creation of their widget library a while back it became possible to create business-type apps as well. But honestly, if all you want to do are normal business apps there […]

This series of videos will show how to create a tab bar at the bottom of the screen. Tabbars are used to go from one part of the app to another, usually in conjunction with Director or Storyboard (we use the latter here at MCSDK). Here’s a link to the sample code for the following […]

The button widget is one of the easiest to implement and also one of the handiest — after all, it’s not very often you create an app without needing someone to tap a menu button, etc. Plus, the button widget is also a great help in creating games and not just business apps. It’s an […]

The TableView widget is used in a lot of (maybe most) business-type apps. It’s the the thing that gives you scrolling rows of data. And when you first look at the tableView documentation and sample code you can get really confused – for me, at least, it didn’t make sense. But spend enough time banging […]

The picker wheel is a widget that allows the user to choose from multiple options — it’s kind of like a window into a tableView widget (and in fact, under the hood where you don’t have to worry about it, the scrolling rows of the picker are using the tableView code). One big difference is […]

Probably the main use for the ScrollView widget in business type apps is displaying pictures that are larger than the device screen. The widget allows you to scroll pictures — or really, any other kind of object — vertically and horizontally. Sample code (right click to download): Creating a ScrollView (10:09) Masking a ScrollView (2:33) […]

The switch widget is cool because it’s kind of a 1-stop shop for on and off stuff. You get a checkbox, an on/off switch, and radio buttons — all from one widget! Sample code (right click to download): Creating an On/Off Switch (4:59) Creating a Checkbox (5:27) Using Radio Buttons (5:46) http://masteringcoronasdk.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php

A widget that’s kind of a cousin to the tab bar, the segmented control allows you to specify a number of options in a row and the user can select one of them at a time. Depending on which is chosen maybe you change the data shown on the screen, etc. It’s just a nice […]

The progress View widget gives you an easy-to-create progress bar. It only comes in a horizontal flavor, but it’s one of the easier widgets to create and use. Sample code (right click to download): Create a Progress View Widget (5:53) http://masteringcoronasdk.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php

A slider widget is the digital equivalent of a sliding switch on a stereo equalizer, or the slider on an audio control board. It has a knob that you grab (touch) and slide back and forth. It allows the user to manually select a range from 0 to 100. Sample code (right click to download): […]

Need to give a visual signal to the user that you’re busy doing something in the background? Sorting a table? Downloading new data? Spinner widget to the rescue! It spins. That’s it. But it does it so easily… Sample code (right click to download): Creating a Spinner Widget (4:46) http://masteringcoronasdk.com/wp-admin/admin-ajax.php

This is a simple little widget that does away with the need for text input when receiving simple numbers from the user. By clicking the plus or minus symbols on the widget a given number goes up or down in increments that you set. Sample code (right click to download): Creating a Stepper (8:56) (That’s […]

For people who haven’t messed with database programming before, this lesson might seem complicated. But what I’ve done is broken it down into only the stuff you need to know. Including a couple chunks of code you can copy and paste and never think about again. Some Terminology In the videos I talk about columns […]